


An Unexpected Kiss

by Diamond_Paint



Series: My Original Works [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Childhood Friends, Crushes, Denial, F/F, F/M, Female Friendship, Female Protagonist, Flirting, Friendship, High School, I'll add more tags as i go, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Slow Burn, Social Anxiety, Texting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-06-20
Packaged: 2019-11-08 10:21:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17979503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diamond_Paint/pseuds/Diamond_Paint
Summary: She never expected this to happen, not like this. Bethany was so shocked, she had no idea how to respond. So she just sat there trying to comprehend how their lips had connected. When the other girl pulled away, Bethany just looked back, dumbstruck, and no doubt blushing like an idiot.To understand how she had ended up here, she’d have to think back to the beginning of the school year.





	1. Think Back to the Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This is a story I'm writing for an english project about a few of my characters, figured I might as well post it here so other people can read it too :)
> 
> I will probably come back and change bits of it as I go and I'm totally welcome to constructive criticism, actually I encourage it as I can use it as an example of interacting with people for the project. 
> 
> Anyway, I'll be posting small updates as I work on it.

She never expected this to happen, not like this. Bethany was so shocked, she had no idea how to respond. So she just sat there trying to comprehend how their lips had connected. When the other girl pulled away, Bethany just looked back, dumbstruck, and no doubt blushing like an idiot. 

To understand how she had ended up here, she’d have to think back to the beginning of the school year.

It was her Junior year of high school, Bethany was as nervous as ever, social anxiety hitting her full force as she walked into the cafeteria to find her best friend before the first set of classes started. After a few moments of nervous searching, almost ready to just give up and go to class, Bethany felt a pair of hands land on her shoulder. She squeaked as she jumped around to see the very girl she was looking for.

“Madelyn!” she sighed in relief  “don’t scare me like that!” Bethany smiled though as she punched her friend’s arm lightly. Madelyn was a few inches taller than her normally, but wearing the heeled boots she adored she seemed to tower over Bethany’s small stature. Today she wore a deep purple tank top that hugged her figure nicely and a short denim skirt. Her sandy blonde hair was pulled up into a ponytail and she had only worn a light bit of makeup, her naturally smooth tanned skin practically glowing as she confidently smiled down at Bethany. 

The shorter girl had always admired her friend’s confidence. Bethany was just a small pale girl with big glasses and curly brown hair she could never seem to control. She had just dyed the ends of her hair a light pink over the summer, and the color was still holding strong. She was wearing a much more simple and less revealing outfit than her friend. Just some simple blue jeans and a loose pink shirt  along with some simple worn out sneakers. Bethany had never felt like she would be able to pull off something like what Madelyn was wearing, and that just made her look up to the girl even more - no pun intended. 

Madelyn chuckled at the reaction she had gotten out of her. “Sorry, sorry” she spoke not really sounding sorry at all. “Nervous about first day back?” Bethany’s nerves must be showing, she tried to steady her breathing more as she responded to her friend’s obviously correct assumption. 

“Maybe a bit.” She admitted quietly.

The taller girl wrapped her arm around the shorter’s shoulders comfortingly “Look, it’s gonna be fine, no need to stress.”

Bethany looked up at her with a gentle smile to show her appreciation for the comfort. “Could we head to class now? Too loud and busy here.” She spoke so quietly she almost thought Madelyn wouldn’t hear her, but she must have because she just nodded and started walking them down to their first period. Her arm was still around Bethany’s shoulders, which wasn’t really strange for them since physical comfort often helped Bethany with nerves, but for some reason today it was sending butterflies through her stomach and she felt herself blushing with every word that came out of her friend’s lips. 

The two navigated through the halls, Bethany immediately feeling some of her tension release when they got out of the large and crowded cafeteria. The hallways weren’t too much better though, students wandering around in search for their classrooms. It was still at least 15 minutes before class actually started though, so they weren’t as crowded as they would be between classes. Bethany always liked to get to school before most others did, there was usually less people crowding the halls before class, giving her time to settle into first period with some quiet time to spare. This was the first day of the new year though, so many opted to come in a bit earlier to find all their classrooms first. 

It didn’t take long to find the classroom the two were looking for, both having had a class with the same teacher last year. Inside was a tidy classroom, some posters already up on the walls, many of them with silly math or teaching related puns. All the chairs were unstacked and only a couple students were inside. The teacher was at her desk drinking her coffee and preparing some things for class. She was a short middle-aged woman with her long brown hair pulled back into a braid. Her round glasses made her eyes look almost cartoony and she wore a blue green sundress with a light brown crochet cardigan over top. 

“Good morning Mrs. Laney” Madelyn greeted her kindly, the woman looked up and smiled at the two girls.

“Good morning girls, good to see you two again” She spoke kindly and truthfully. Mrs. Laney had been their favorite teacher last year since she actually managed to make her class more interesting and taught the material well. She was a kind woman and very rarely overworked or stressed her students. Needless to say she was one of the favorites of many students at their school.

Madelyn and Bethany smiled back at her as they took their seats near the front, chatting idly while they waited for class to start.

“Been thinking of trying out for the dance team” Madelyn said with a hint of excitement in her voice.

Bethany smiled at her “Well I know if you do you’ll get in for sure, you’re really good.” she blushed at her own words but the taller girl didn’t pay notice.

“You think so? I mean, I did pretty well in those summer classes but I don’t know. What if they don’t like me?”

“Hey, you’re like, the best dancer I know. Go for it girl.” Bethany encouraged her friend. “And if you somehow don’t get in, that’s their loss.”  

Madelyn smiled and hugged her for a moment “Thanks B” she let go and smiles.

The pale girl grinned back at her shyly. “Of course.” 

Class soon started and it was pretty uneventful, just going over the syllabus and rules for the classroom and all that. Mrs. Laney managed to keep it from being too boring but it was pretty difficult and most of the class seemed to barely be paying attention. 

With the first class of the day done with, Bethany felt a little less stressed about the rest of the day, though hated the fact that she didn’t have another class with Madalyn until after lunch.

“Ugh, sucks that we don’t have more classes together.” The taller girl complained as they put away their things at the end of the class. Bethany smiled a little at the knowledge that her friend also seemed displeased with having less time to spend with her. 

“I know, super sucks.” She grabbed her bag and stood up, Madelyn following as they left the classroom. 

The two walked and chatted happily until they had to part ways into different hallways. Madelyn hugged Bethany gently, giving her a smile “See ya at lunch, kay?”

Bethany smiled softly back “Of course, same spot as usual?” 

“Yep.” She gave a quick wave as she turned to walk down to her next class. “See ya!”

“See ya!” The pale girl called back, having to force herself to keep walking down the crowded hallway to find her next class instead of just standing and watching her friend walk away. 


	2. Marshal James

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bethany makes it through her next few classes without Madelyn and meets some guy who's very interested in her friend.

It was a bid harder for the girl to get through the next two classes without her friend to talk to, but she managed and only started to get a little stressed when her third period teacher decided it would be a fun idea to play one of those get to know you games. Bethany hated those, talking to people was always hard for her, especially people she didn’t know, which, to be fair, was most people as she rarely went out of her way to start conversations with new people. Most of the friends she had were because of Madelyn or family.

So yeah, Bethany was not happy about the situation. The assignment was to talk to three people you didn’t know and find out their favorite hobby, subject, and animal and write it down on a paper under their name. As the class stood up and started walking around, Bethany just stood by her chair waiting for someone to come up to her.

A tall, tanned boy with short and dark curly hair who Bethany was sure was on the football team walked up to her, paper and pencil in hand. 

“Hey there” He spoke with a confidence Bethany could never even hope to have.”

“Uhh h-hi” she stuttered out quietly in response, looking down at her blank paper. 

“My name’s Marshal” he reached out his hand for a handshake, and Bethany nervously responded, shaking it hesitantly with a weak smile. 

Marshal smiled back and watched as the small girl shakily wrote down his name “uh, last name?” she asked quietly.

“James” He said as he leaned over the desk to start writing on his paper. “What about you?”

Bethany finished writing out his name and spoke her own quietly. “I-I’m Bethany Williams”

“Okay Bethany, what’s your favorite subject?” He tried to make eye contact as he waited for her response but she avoided his gaze and looked down at his surprisingly neat handwriting of her name. He had spelled her last name with one L instead of two but she didn’t say anything to correct the mistake, not wanting to make him go through the small extra effort for her.

“Um, I like my math class” she said, internally hoping he wouldn't make a joke about her being a nerd or something like that. She was surprised however, to see him smile as he wrote the information down under her name.

“Cool, cool. You have Mrs. Laney, right? First period?” Bethany looked up into his hazel brown eyes for a moment.

“Uh, y-yeah, how did you?-”

“Dude, I’m in the same class, was sittin in the back.” he smiled as he interrupted her, she didn’t mind the rudeness, being used to it. “You were sittin next to Madelyn Thomas, right?” he looked at her for a response. The small girl honestly felt uncomfortably with having this much attention on her from someone so unfamiliar, but again, she didn’t say anything of her discomfort, just wanting to move on and finish this interaction.

“Mhm” she said quietly. “What’s your favorite subject?”

“I actually really like english” he said with a smile, and Bethany wrote the subject under his name. “So you and Madelyn are friends, right? I see you two together all the time.”

“Yeah” Bethany spoke, not looking up from her paper. “Best friends since kindergarten” she smiled to herself a little at the thought, though she did wonder why this guy seemed so interested in her.

“Oh nice!” he smiled back “she seeing anyone?” oh, thats why. It didn’t really surprise her that he was interested in her best friend. Madelyn was a very attractive girl, a fact that Bethany was aware was not unnoticed by the boys around them throughout the years. She had seen boyfriends come and go, and been there with Madelyn through all of it. She’d surprisingly never really felt jealous of any of them, because at the end of the day, Madelyn was always there for her, no boy had ever changed that.

“Nope” she said and looked back to her paper, paying no mind to the pleased smile that spread across the boy’s face. “What is your favorite animal?” she asked, hoping to change the subject from her friend and finish this.

“Mantis shrimp” he said “they’re the coolest things ever.” 

“Huh, okay” she said as she wrote the animal down. “I like pomeranians”

“Cool cool, those are the cute and fluffy little dogs right?” he wrote it down and Bethany nodded.

“Guessing your favorite hobby is football?” Bethany asked, ready to write it down on her paper.

“Yep, you got it” he smiled “what about you?” 

Bethany spoke quietly as she wrote down Marshal’s interest, but she must have been too quiet for him to hear because he just kept looking and made a questioning sound.

“I-I like to draw.” she said just loud enough to be heard.

“Oh cool, can I see?” The jock seemed interested but Bethany just blushed and shook her head no. 

“I-I’d rather n-not” she said in embarrassment “I’m n-not that good anyway.”

“Fine fine” he said, smile still unfaltering. “Hey, can you do me a favor?” He asked kindly, and Bethany had an idea of what it might be, but figured to ask anyway.

Her suspicions were proven correct when she heard him ask “Could you give Madelyn my number?” she just sighed and figured she might as well.

“Sure” 

Marshal grinned excitedly and Bethany would admit, he was pretty cute, and seemed nice enough. At least he hadn’t made fun of her. She watched as he wrote down his number on the corner of his paper and tore it off, handing it to her. 

“Thanks Bethany, see ya around” He gave a little wave goodbye and didn’t hear Bethany’s small response of “Yeah, see ya” as he went to talk to some other student and she tucked the small paper into her pocket.

The next two people she talked to were a lot less talkative and seemed just as eager to get this over with as she did, which Bethany was silently appreciative of. She sat back at her desk and looked down at her paper. She started to doodle flowers in the empty space while she waited for the rest of the class to finish. 

By the time everyone was seated, she had drawn a girls face amongst the flowers. Not just any girl’s face however, it was none other than her best friend. Beautiful messy hair framing her sweet face. Her eyes were closed in a peaceful smile. This was not an unusual thing for Bethany to draw, in face, many of the pages in her sketchbook were drawings of Madelyn. 

The girl was just so pretty and whenever she sent Bethany random selfies on snapchat or posted cute pictures on instagram, the girl felt inspired to draw her. She had mentioned to her friend how she was her main source of inspiration and the girl had thought it was sweet and encouraged her. 

Now, some people may think it a weird or honestly creepy habit and think she must be obsessively in love with her best friend, which be so ridiculous. Yeah, she admitted Madelyn was pretty and meant the world to her, but it’s a completely platonic love! Besides, Bethany was totally and definitely straight, not that there would be anything wrong with her not being straight or anything she just-

Bethany was cut out of her spiraling thoughts as the teacher instructed the class to turn in their papers and come grab a syllabus. Bethany’s face instantly flushed bright pink at the realisation that her teacher would see her drawing of her best friend. The girl got up anyway and turned in the paper, trying to ignore the feeling that everyone was staring at her.

Shortly after returning to her seat with her syllabus in hand, the bell rang and she let out a sigh of relief, eager to see her friend again during the lunch period they thankfully shared. 

The anxious girl quickly and carefully dodged her classmates as she made her way through the crowded hallway and out to an open area outside. She looked to an empty bench under a tree and walked towards it, setting down her bag in the empty space next to her as she sat down to wait for Madelyn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> feel free to send me asks about the characters or story on my [tumblr](https://diamondpaint.tumblr.com/), or just message me if you want, always like to make new friends :)


	3. What A Coincidence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bethany and Madelyn talk to each other and Marshal during lunch, and they find a fun little coincidence in schedules when they do.

Bethany sat in an anxious silence, watching other groups of people chat and walk around with food. She tried not to let her mind wander into worrying about why Madelyn wasn’t there yet. She was probably just held up in a class or having trouble making it through the crowded hallways. But what if she wasn’t? What if she decided to hang out with some other friends and leave Bethany alone? Her mind was so crowded with these ‘what if’s that the small girl didn’t notice the very girl she was worrying about move her bag to take a seat next to her until she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“Hey girl, you okay there?” her comforting smile was enough to calm down the stressed girl as it always had. 

“Y-yeah” she breathed with a soft smile of her own “now that you’re here.”

Madelyn continued to smile sweetly, knowing her friend had most likely been stressing about her taking a little longer to reach her. “Sorry for keeping you waiting, some a**holes were standing right in the doorway and wouldn’t let me through so I had to go around.”

Bethany was relieved to hear that she hadn’t been forgotten, though she did know the worries were as unreasonable as anything else she stressed about, school just had a way of making her freak about everything. “It’s okay” it was only partially a lie. “How were your classes?” She reached down into her bag to bring out a neatly packed lunch of half a pb&j sandwich, a small apple, and a bag of plain potato chips.

“Meh, Mr. Carrow just handed out a syllabus and let us do whatever and Ms. Anne talked on and on about the same school rules we already had drilled into our heads the last two years.” She chuckles, it’s a cute, sweet sound that was enough to bring the soft smile back to Bethany’s lips. “Jordan already got himself into trouble in second period.” She looked excited to tell the story and Bethany would be lying if she tried to convince herself that it wasn’t adorable.

“Oh?” she prompted the other girl, taking a small bite out of her sandwich.

“Mhm, he was talking all class, very loudly mind you, about how great his sex with Alice was.” Bethany looked at her with a quirked brow. 

“Isn’t Alice gay?” She asked after swallowing her food.

“That’s what makes it even better!” Madelyn laughed, showing off her perfect teeth. “No one believed him of course, but he was making fake moans and stuff and Mr. Carrow actually took notice of a student for once and made him go to the principal’s office. He refused of course, making fun of him and all. Ya know, the usual.” She went on to talk about the rest of the exchange and what gossip followed while Bethany continued eating her sandwich and occasionally adding bits of response and her own opinions.

It was comfortable, as it always was with Madelyn. She felt like no one was watching her or judging her and she felt herself smile more than she had in the two classes without the other girl. It was amazing how close the two had become over their years of friendship. 

Eventually, the conversation had turned attention on her, which with anyone else, she would have avoided speaking as much as possible, but with Madelyn she talked about how her other classes went. Madelyn nodded and smiled empathetically when she started saying they had had to do the get to know you activity. 

When Bethany started talking about the surprisingly friendly jock je remembered he had asked her to give Madelyn his number. “Oh he kept asking about you, he wanted me to give you this.” She reached into her pocket and frew out the small bit of paper, handing it to the girl.

“Awe, how cute” she smiled, pulling out her phone, it had one of those aquarium cases filled with various glitters and small charms. It was bright and sparkly, very fitting for the girl’s personality. “He seems pretty nice, I’ll send him a text now so i don’t forget.” Bethany nodded and put away her sandwich, having only eaten about half of it but not feeling hungry enough to finish. She watched as her friend typed out the short message. Probably just a quick greeting of ‘hey there, it’s madelyn’ or something like that. 

She finished the text and put her phone back in her bag. “So” she said “what did he say he liked? You had to ask him some questions for the assignment, right?” She had a light and curious tone, the question not only to get to know how Bethany’s day went but to also get a bit of info about this dude who seemed so interested in her.

“He was nice, talked a bit too much for me but you know how I am with new people.” Madelyn nodded in understanding and smiled, looking to her for more of the story. “He likes football and is good with english, and his favorite animal is the mantis shrimp.”

“Ooh unique, I like it.” Madelyn had not yet taken out a lunch, and Bethany got curious as to why.

“You forget to pack a lunch again?” she guessed, seeing the girl eyeing her apple.

Madelyn sighed. “Yeah, didn’t have time this morning, spent too long getting ready.”

Bethany handed her the apple her mom made her pack, she wouldn’t have eaten it anyway. “You really should learn to plan things the night before.” 

“I know I know.” She smiled and took the apple gratefully. The girls heard a small buzz from Madelyn’s bag. She reached down to grab her phone, checking her notifications. She knew Bethany got more anxious at the thought of her ignoring messages because of her so she was always sure to take a moment to respond when she was around her friend, though she tried not to let it get in the way of their conversations. 

“He text back already?” Bethany questioned curiously.

“Yep, wanna see?” She giggled a little as she read the text and turned the screen towards Bethany so she could see it for herself.

**[me]** Hey there, its Madelyn :)

**[Marshal]** hey qt

**[Marshal]** hows it goin?

Bethany chuckled “You know for someone who claims he likes English, he’s not doing so good with grammar.” both girls giggled as Madelyn typed out a response, sitting so Bethany could see as she typed.

**[me]** good good, heard u were askin about me?

The little dots of him typing a response were almost instant and the response was sent after only a few seconds of typing. How other people could type out messages and send them that quick Bethany had no idea, but she set those thoughts aside as she read his quickly typed response.

**[Marshal]** ye, wanna get 2 kno the cutest girl in scool 

Another message was sent quickly after.

**[Marshal]** ;)

“Damn, that’s pretty smooth.” Madelyn said through another fit of giggles, typing out a quick message response.

**[me]** How cute, wanna hang today aftr class then?

Once again the response was quick and had the girl smiling.

**[Marshal]** sounds gud

**[Marshal]** who u have for 6th?

**[me]** Hold on, gotta check my schedule

Madelyn looked through her bag, pulling up a folded piece of paper and deciding to send a pic of her schedule instead of typing out a response. 

The whole while, Bethany was content to watch the events unfold, snacking on her chips quietly with a smile. It was always nice to see someone making Madelyn happy, even if it wasn’t her. Wait, that sounded like she liked her like that. Which would be a totally weird thing to do. Falling for you best friend and risking ruining your friendship? No thank you, Bethany would be having none of that. It was just that she wanted her friend to be happy, yeah. Besides, she was straight, so that would be a complete disaster.

By the time Bethany had been pulled out of her thoughts, there were several messages she hadn’t read yet. She took a moment to scroll back up in the conversation to when the photo had been sent, Madelyn smiling and allowing her to do so.

**[Marshal]** no way

**[Marshal]** we got the smae pe and history classes

**[me]** Srsly? 

Marshal had sent a picture of his own schedule, showing that same first period math class and the same classes for 5th and 6th periods as Madelyn. Bethany made a small “huh” of surprise and kept reading.

**[me]** wow, what a fun coincidence lol :)

**[Marshal]** ye, so i guess ill c u in pe then

**[me]** Yeah, see ya then

**[me]** I’m gonna go, hanging with Bethany

**[Marshal]** k, tell her i say thank

**[Marshal]** ttyl cutie ;)

**[me]** Will do, ttyl

Bethany smiled. “How fun, you two seem like you’ll get along well”

Madelyn smiled back and returned her Phone to her bag again. “Yeah, he seems pretty nice so far.” 

Bethany knew how much Madelyn loved first dates. She, unlike the shorter girl, loved meeting and getting to know new people. Bethany didn’t really understand it, but seeing her friend happy and excited made her happy. 

“So, what do you think you two will get up to?” 

“Dunno, we’ll probably go hang at Starbucks or something. I’ll definitely keep you updated” she smiles for probably the hundredth time that day, but it still has just as much of its contagious energy as all the rest, because before she realised it, Bethany had a smile painted across her face as well.

“Cool cool.” Bethany continued to smile but then it faded as the bell rang to signal the end of lunch and both girls groaned in annoyance.

“Well, at least we have bio together” Madelyn reminded the girl, bringing the smile back to her lips.

“Yeah” she agreed happily, grabbing her bag from it’s spot on the ground. Madelyn followed suit and the two started their way towards the classroom, ducking through the busy and crowded hallways. The whole while, Madelyn had her hand on Bethany’s arm, giving her the silent comfort to be able to navigate the halls without much stress. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> feel free to send me asks about the characters or story on my [tumblr](https://diamondpaint.tumblr.com/), or just message me if you want, always like to make new friends :)


	4. You're Hopeless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bethany talks to a friend in art class and overthinks everything.

When they got to the Biology classroom, many of the seats were filled. There were not any seats available next to each other and Bethany felt herself starting to get anxious about having to sit away from her friend.

Madelyn just gave her a comforting smile that said ‘don’t worry, I’ve got this’ and walked over to a student sitting between two empty seats. 

She used a friendly and confident tone as she sweetly asked the student if they could move over one seat to let the two sit next to each other. The teen shrugged and switched seats. Bethany smiled up at her friend in thanks and the two took their seats. 

Nothing special really happened during that period, the teacher seemed nice enough and just handed out the syllabus. Bethany and Madelyn chatted idly until the end of class when they knew they’d have to part for the rest of the day.

“Have fun flirting with Marshal,” Bethany said through a fading smile.

“Oh, I will.” A soft smirk spread across the blonde‘s glossed lips and she winked at the smaller girl causing her to giggle. 

“See ya then.” Bethany smiles and gives the other a quick hug.

“Yeah, see ya.” Madelyn smiles softly back and the two departed to go to their respective classes. 

On the way to her art class, Bethany wasn't feeling as nervous despite the lack of her best friend by her side. Art was her comfort zone. She may not always be confident with it, but it was something that made her happy and the people in the art classes always seem nice and not as high energy as many other classes.

As she arrived in the familiar art classroom, the teacher greeted her with a kind smile. “Hello  Bethany, good to see you again.” 

Bethany smiled back, sitting down in her favorite spot by the window. “Good to see you too Miss Amy.” Miss Amy was a sweet woman, not much taller than Bethany. Her graying blonde hair was curled like Bethany’s and was recently cut to about as low as her chin, a change that hadn’t gone unnoticed. “Love the new haircut, looks cute.” She smiled as she got out her sketchbook.

Miss Amy gave her a warm smile, the freckled features of her face softening with it and green eyes sparkling happily at receiving the compliment. “Thank you, dear, it was getting to be a bit much to handle at that longer length so I figured it was about time to cut it.” she continued to smile and greet the other students coming into the classroom.

As the classroom filed, Bethany noticed a few familiar faces, including a girl with shoulder length hair, dyed half pink half purple, her glasses framing her darker toned face that showed a much moodier expression than the usual light and cheerful one she wore. The girl took a seat next to Bethany, slumping in her chair and taking out her sketchbook with frustration clear in her actions. Usually, the pale girl would shy away and get uncomfortable at someone sitting next to her, especially if they were in a bad mood. But she knew this girl, in fact, she and Madelyn had just been talking about her earlier.

Bethany looked at her a little worriedly, knowing already what put her in such a mood. “Hey Alice, you okay?” she asked carefully. The two had only met in an art class the year before, and Alice had become one of Bethany’s few friends, though they weren't super close, only ever hanging out in class or occasionally messaging on social media. Still, Madelyn had been proud of her for making a new friend.

Alice straightened herself up and stretched, arms raising above her head and little pops sounding as she arched her back. She let out a small groan and slumped back down in her chair. “People suck,” she stated simply.

“Yeah,” Bethany started, looking at the black cover of her sketchbook, “I heard about what Jordan was saying.” she looked over to Alice, noticing her roll her eyes.

“Ugh, I can’t believe him! He somehow got my number and was  _ totally _ flirting with me, which,” she stopped for a moment to laugh “I just, wow. Is he freaking blind? I’ve been out since middle school! And when I reminded him he got super pissy and now this.” 

Bethany let her rant, glancing at her a few times to make sure she knew she was listening. Though it didn’t seem like she noticed or cared whether she was at the moment, she was more focused on the story. Bethany could tell a couple others were listening in, probably curious to hear her side of it. 

The darker skinned girl continued, not picking up on any of this, “At least no one believes him, what an ass. It’s guys like him that are the reason I’m gay, ya know?” She looked to Bethany with a smile, having seemed to have gotten her frustration out. Bethany smiled back and nodded, glad she could be of help to her friend, even if it was just by sitting and listening.

“Y-yeah, he’s a real jerk, sorry that happened.” 

“It’s fine.” Alice waved it off, getting out a sparkling pink pencil case with her name placed on in cute sticker letters. “Thanks for letting me rant, really needed that.”

A sweet smile spread across Bethany’s face as she nodded back, grabbing her own pencil from a pocket in her bag. “Of course, what are friends for?” she pushed down the thoughts telling her that Alice didn’t really like talking to her or being her friend, if she didn’t she wouldn’t have sat next to her right? Before her thoughts could spiral, Miss Amy spoke to the class cheerfully.

“Alright class, I figure you all already know each other enough by now that we don’t have to do any of those silly games.” a collective sigh of relief sounded from the group of students. Miss Amy smiled at everyone, continuing to speak her plan for the period’s activities, “Today I'll just let you all chill and work on whatever projects you want, sound good?” A general murmur of agreement followed this suggestion. 

She only continued to talk for another few minutes about how the class will be structured for the year, most tuned out for this, as it was the same as she had always done it for most of her classes. Just work on your projects and update your portfolio, simple enough. 

Bethany opened her sketchbook to a new page, staring at it in thought, trying to conjure up an idea. She decided to just start drawing and see what happens.

As she sketched, she tuned out of her surroundings a bit, something she was only ever really able to do when drawing. Her mind calmed and her pencil danced across the page. She didn’t notice Alice watching until she already had the basic drawing laid out, it was a girl, though she wasn’t drawn to look like any specific person. Just a pretty girl in a flower crown. 

She sat back a bit to look at it to decide where she wanted to go with it and broke out of her daze at noticing the other girl watching her intently. She didn’t say anything or look away when noticing she had been caught looking. She smiled at the rough sketch and then back to Bethany. 

“She’s pretty,” she stated simply looking back at the page again. “You’ve gotten better over the summer.” The smile and tone of her voice was genuine as she gave the compliment.

“Th-thanks.” Bethany stuttered out quietly. She was never good at receiving compliments, especially coming from people she wasn’t as close to. Always so ready to her criticism as harsh as she gives herself, a compliment takes her by surprise every time.

“Totally,” Alice was kind enough to not comment on her reaction, instead giving her sketchbook an inquisitive look. You still drawing that girl you’re always with? Madelyn, right?” There wasn’t any judgment in her tone, though Bethany had a feeling she knew where the conversation was going.

“Um, y-yeah, I still draw Madelyn a lot. And uh, before you ask, no still we aren’t dating.” She looked back at her paper with a blush tinting her pale cheeks.

Alice let out a quiet giggle “Figured”

Bethany looked up at her “What do you mean?” she knew some people would tend to assume they were an item because of how close the two were, hell, Alice wouldn’t stop asking about it last year. Things weren’t like that though. They were just friends, and that's how Bethany wanted it.

“I just meant that if you two finally realized how totally gay you are for each other it would be a bit more obvious, an I'll probably be the first one you come to when you get your head out of that sketchbook and don’t know how to ask a girl out.” She laughed and looked at the deep blush on the pale girl’s face with a smirk. 

“I-I uhm, I already told you it’s not like that!” Alice laughed again at her flustered response, it was a playful, teasing laugh, and Bethany knew there was no harm intended by it.

“Calm down I’m just kidding.” She nudged the other gently with her arm and opened her own sketchbook “Mostly.” 

Bethany rolled her eyes and got back to her drawing, though her thoughts were now on Madelyn. Why did everyone think that way about them? Was there something she was missing? No, Madelyn is straight, and so is she. Right? Well, it’s not like she’s ever actually had a crush on anyone, but that’s cause she just doesn’t really talk to anyone. But guys are cute, right? She always has felt more comfortable around girls though, and she only ever really draws girls. Pretty girls at that. They’re just easier! And yeah Madelyn is pretty and fun to draw, that doesn’t mean…

She was once again pulled out of her thoughts as Alice looked over at her drawing and giggled. Bethany looked back at it again and realized the girl she had been drawing now strongly resembled her friend, the one she had just been off in a spiral of maybe a little queer thoughts.

“You’re hopeless” Alice shook her head and returned to her drawing. Bethany didn’t know what to say, luckily she didn’t have to worry about a response because Alice spoke again. “Look, I get it if you haven’t realized it yet, but if you ever need a queer friend to talk to, I’m here, okay? And hey, I could be wrong, but my gaydar is pretty strong.” 

Why was she so insistent about how Bethany was  _ ‘totally gay’ _ for her best friend? That really isn’t her business. Bethany was starting to get a little upset, though her anxiety of looking one of her only friends stopped her from saying anything. Besides, what if she’s right? No. No, she can not be in love with her best friend. That would just cause a huge mess. She’s totally happy with the way things are now, no need to overthink it.

The upset caused by Alice’s comment must have managed to show because Alice looked back at her again with an apologetic smile, “Sorry, I really didn’t mean to upset you girl, I just want you to know that you have me if you want someone to talk to besides Madelyn. I’ll stop with all the gay shit if that’s what’s bothering you.” Bethany immediately felt bad for being upset with her, even though she knew it was a reasonable thing to be upset about. She must have given off the wrong message and made Alice think she was upset at her for being gay or something. Which couldn’t be further from the truth. She was actually really proud of her for being so open about it, even when it clearly got her negative attention.

“Hey, it’s fine, it’s nothing like that, promise.” Alice looked up at her as she spoke again. Trying not to shy away, Bethany continued, “It’s just, I’m really happy with how things are with me and Madelyn, and, I’m kinda tired of people trying to assume stuff about us, you know?” She looked back at her drawing, hoping she said the right thing.

“Yeah, yeah I get that. Sorry for being so pushy about it.” Alice tapped her arm to get her to look up from her drawing, “We still good?” for a moment, Alice seemed just as nervous about ruining the friendship they started as Bethany was, and that look made Bethany relax. 

“Yeah, we good.” She nodded and smiled. 

“Good” Alice smiled back, regaining her usual confidence “cause I really wanna be a better friend to you this year, I know it’s hard for you to talk to people with all your social anxiety and whatever, but I’m here for you.”

“Thanks” Bethany didn’t let herself think at this moment that she could be lying, that she could just be using her, she was just genuinely happy to have someone else to have as a friend. 

**Author's Note:**

> feel free to send me asks about the characters or story on my [tumblr](https://diamondpaint.tumblr.com/), or just message me if you want, always like to make new friends :)


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